10 Die in snowstorm in eastern Japan

A huge snowstorm in eastern Japan this weekend has caused significant transportation problems, including traffic accidents that have resulted in 10 deaths and other incidents in which one person died and another was seriously injured.

The storm caused power outages that affected 48,000 homes in the region surrounding Tokyo, more than half of which - 26,000 - continue to be without electricity, Tokyo Electric Power, or TEPCO, said.

The snow and ice were apparently responsible for several traffic accidents in the prefectures of Ishikawa, Nagano and Aichi which resulted in 10 deaths, public television network NHK reported Sunday.

A 78-year-old man died when he slipped and fell while removing snow from his roof in the prefecture of Chiba, to the east of Tokyo, while a 69-year-old man is in serious condition after a similar accident.

The storm has left about 1,200 people injured in various ways, police said.

Hundreds of flights have been cancelled due to heavy winds.

Some 290,000 passengers were affected by the delays the storm caused on the Tokaido and Sanyo bullet train lines that link Tokyo with the western portion of the island of Honshu, the largest in the Japanese archipelago. EFE